Rikki's Star (Hearts of ICARUS Book 8) by Laura Jo Phillips

Author:Laura Jo Phillips [Phillips, Laura Jo]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kathleen Honsinger
Published: 2017-01-19T21:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

Present

Rikki stopped speaking when she heard a soft sob from her mother. She reached out for her hand and squeezed it gently.

“Bless the Creators,” Jackson said, his voice hoarse, surprising her.

“Ata?”

“First Mr. Carlson loses his life trying to protect you, then Mrs. Carlson does the same.”

“I know,” she said softly. “They both died because of me.”

“No,” Jackson said firmly. “They did not die because of you, Rikki. Mrs. Carlson had reasons for the choices she made that had nothing to do with you or Charley. But some of those reasons were for you, and she deserves to be honored for that.”

“I know, Ata,” Rikki said. “I’ve been trying to think of a way to do that. Maybe a grant or scholarship or…I don’t know. I just want to do something in their memory. Dede told me that all mention of their murders has been wiped away, and that’s just not right. They should be remembered. Them, and Suzen, and all of the other women, too.”

“A scholarship is an excellent idea, Rikki,” Olaf Gryphon said. “We’ll all give this some serious thought. And we’ll see what we can do about getting that erase job reversed, too.”

“Thank you, Uncle Olaf,” she said, then leaned over to kiss Hope’s cheek. “I’ll be right back. Need to get a drink.”

She went into the kitchen, got a glass, added ice to it and filled it with water. She drank half of it, refilled it, then went back to the living room to find it empty except for the Bearens, her mother, and Aunt Ash.

“Where’d everyone go?” she asked as she sat back down.

“Outside to patrol the grounds,” Hope replied. “They won’t be long.”

“We’ll join them,” Kyrus said, catching a quick look from Hope that he accurately read.

Rikki watched them leave, then turned back to her mother in time to catch a flicker of determination in her eyes. “What?”

“You skipped over a thing or two when you spoke about the lab,” Hope said. Rikki nodded, but she didn’t say anything.

“That’s the part you’re afraid of telling.”

“It is,” Rikki admitted, setting her glass on a coaster. “None of this is her fault, Mom. If anything, it’s my fault for not coming home for the summer instead of going to Argon. She’s an innocent baby. She didn’t have anything to do with what those people did.”

“Garen promised you that no harm would come to Charley,” Hope reminded her gently. “He’d never break his word.”

“I know,” Rikki said with a sigh. “It’s just…so awful. But don’t worry Mom. I’m getting there.”

***

Kyrus left the house with his brothers, then moved far enough away from the house and the other men to speak privately, while still keeping an eye on the door. He opened his mouth, then closed it, unable to put his feelings into words.

“How does she do it, I wonder?” Kash asked softly.

“Do what?”

“She sits there, obviously nervous and exhausted, and speaks calmly about an ordeal that would drive most of us completely mad. She makes it sound almost…uneventful.

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